lets alll hope that with the new coaching staff we finally have someone that can teach him how to catch the ball. If he can do that we got a bargain. If not...well.. MEH!

_________________2013 Lionbacker Fantasy Football Champion

March 14th, 2014, 3:24 pm

kdsberman

League MVP

Joined: February 20th, 2007, 10:51 pmPosts: 3485Location: Saginaw, MI

Re: Pettigrew re-signs with Lions

regularjoe12 wrote:

lets alll hope that with the new coaching staff we finally have someone that can teach him how to catch the ball. If he can do that we got a bargain. If not...well.. MEH!

I have a hard time believing you can "teach" someone to catch the ball, especially someone that has played football his whole life and now has been in the league since 2009. Like teaching an old dog new tricks.

lets alll hope that with the new coaching staff we finally have someone that can teach him how to catch the ball. If he can do that we got a bargain. If not...well.. MEH!

I have a hard time believing you can "teach" someone to catch the ball, especially someone that has played football his whole life and now has been in the league since 2009. Like teaching an old dog new tricks.

To be fair he's been "coached up" by the Jim Schwartz staff his whole career. Even at 29 there is a chance they just never understood how to show him what he was doing wrong in his technique or maybe Caldwell's staff has a way to improve his concentration the others didn't.

March 14th, 2014, 6:10 pm

Leo

3rd Round Selection

Joined: January 11th, 2005, 11:35 pmPosts: 1157

Re: Pettigrew re-signs with Lions

I think it's pretty clear Pettigrew returned to the Lions because he didn't get the huge payday he was expecting. According to Pro Football Focus Pettigrew was even more horrible than many of you may have realized - not even coming close to earning his last contract.

Quote:

Brandon Pettigrew, Tight End - The former first-round pick failed to take a step forward in his contract year when the Lions needed him most. On a team desperate for a solid receiving option after Calvin Johnson, Pettigrew finished fifth on the team in receptions (41) and sixth in receiving yards (416). His value could have been higher had he been a better blocker to offset his mediocrity in the passing game. However, at times Pettigrew struggled to hold his own, ranking 48th of 64 tight ends with a combined -8.6 run and screen blocking grade.

Bleacher Report doesn't think more of him ranking him 48 of 50 tight ends - making somebody wonder if he would even be able to start for a team outside of Detroit.

Quote:

Hands 24/40 - Brandon Pettigrew (6’5”, 265 lbs, five seasons) has the ability to make big plays, but he lacks the focus to be one of the premier tight ends in the league. While he improved this past season, Pettigrew was still near the top of the league in drops.

Blocking 2/10 - Although he has good size, Pettigrew isn’t able to make a difference in the run game. He comes out of his stance too high and isn’t able create clear running lanes for the Lions running backs. He shows some strength at the point of attack but lacks the mean streak needed to be an effective blocker.

Route Running 23/30 - A very athletic tight end, Pettigrew has the agility to run clean, crisp routes. He shows quickness in and out of his breaks and does a nice job of shielding the defender from the ball. Pettigrew does most of his damage underneath and isn’t a major threat downfield.

Speed 14/20 - As he relies more on quickness than speed, Pettigrew isn’t going to pull away from defenders and make very many big plays. Due to that lacking speed, he has to create separation by running great routes and using his body.

Overall 63/100 - Pettigrew has followed up a couple of promising years at the beginning of his career with two mediocre years the past two seasons. Considering he has struggled to be a consistent target for Matthew Stafford and a playmaker alongside Calvin Johnson, the Lions have a big decision to make regarding re-signing Pettigrew.

_________________The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.

March 15th, 2014, 12:29 am

TADOne

Play by Play Announcer - Al Michaels

Joined: April 27th, 2005, 3:26 pmPosts: 1776

Re: Pettigrew re-signs with Lions

Whoever wrote that report for Bleacher Report has no idea what they are talking about. Pettigrew has been lauded for a long time as a good to great blocking TE from numerous football people who I trust much more than someone writing for Bleacher Report. This was a good signing for the money.

_________________Regards,

Tim

March 15th, 2014, 10:22 am

Blueskies

QB Coach

Joined: September 13th, 2007, 12:43 pmPosts: 3084

Re: Pettigrew re-signs with Lions

^agreed.

Pettigrew was unquestionably a bust for a TE taken in R1, but he isn't a bad TE overall. I'd say he's slightly above average.

lets alll hope that with the new coaching staff we finally have someone that can teach him how to catch the ball. If he can do that we got a bargain. If not...well.. MEH!

I have a hard time believing you can "teach" someone to catch the ball, especially someone that has played football his whole life and now has been in the league since 2009. Like teaching an old dog new tricks.

To be fair he's been "coached up" by the Jim Schwartz staff his whole career. Even at 29 there is a chance they just never understood how to show him what he was doing wrong in his technique or maybe Caldwell's staff has a way to improve his concentration the others didn't.

I remember Herman Moore dropped a lot of passes his rookie season. The Lions had his eyes checked and discovered that he needed glasses. It fixed the problem.

March 15th, 2014, 11:06 am

Leo

3rd Round Selection

Joined: January 11th, 2005, 11:35 pmPosts: 1157

Re: Pettigrew re-signs with Lions

There are TWO sites and one very credible in Pro Football Focus that says Pettigrew is not a good blocker - with teams playing 6 men in the box the Lions have never had a very impressive run game so it's hard for me to argue with them.

_________________The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.

March 15th, 2014, 11:24 am

Killwill25

Rookie Player of the Year

Joined: March 5th, 2009, 8:42 pmPosts: 2411Location: Brooklyn, NY

Re: Pettigrew re-signs with Lions

Leo wrote:

There are TWO sites and one very credible in Pro Football Focus that says Pettigrew is not a good blocker - with teams playing 6 men in the box the Lions have never had a very impressive run game so it's hard for me to argue with them.

Kind of hard to put up great rushing numbers when the team throws the ball 700 times a season

_________________Just one Super Bowl win before I go!

March 15th, 2014, 3:17 pm

Boz

All State

Joined: September 28th, 2011, 5:57 pmPosts: 338

Re: Pettigrew re-signs with Lions

If the writers think that Pett is the reason for our lackluster run game they should be covering 7th grade curling in Iceland. There are at least 5 other guys much larger and stronger than Pett that hold the main responsibility for run blocking at any given time. Does he piss me off? At times yes but so does Megatron!

Yes you can teach the ability to catch the ball. I will use a baseball analogy as I can't remember the last name of the WR from the Rams that I wanted to use. Torrey ? I believe he had a sibling that played for us.

Any way a ML 3rd baseman, Matt Williams was a hitting machine both avg. and power. Problem was, early in his his career he was semi stone hands. He could stop almost anything but couldn't hang onto the ball long enough to throw the runner even with the cannon he had. Don't know if they were soda or beer bottle tops but someone convinced Matt, maybe his dad, maybe a coach or he may have gotten high (j/k Matt) and dreamed it up himself. He took bottle caps and put them inside his glove, sharp side towards his palm. After finding enough coaches, teammates and friends to hit ground balls at him and after many cuts he finally figured out "soft hands". The more he held back and cradled the ball the less it hurt and the more balls he gloved. Matt was an All-Star for hitting and fielding.

Sorry about the long explination but Williams learned how to catch a ball coming at over 100mph and Torrey took 100 catches after every practice and became one of the most sure handed recievers in the NFL.

Even pros make mistakes and need coaching, but for 50 years straight.

Resigning Pett is the least of our problems.

March 15th, 2014, 4:51 pm

Blueskies

QB Coach

Joined: September 13th, 2007, 12:43 pmPosts: 3084

Re: Pettigrew re-signs with Lions

March 15th, 2014, 5:29 pm

liontrax

#1 Overall Pick

Joined: March 21st, 2005, 2:11 pmPosts: 1432Location: Wolverine, Mi.

Re: Pettigrew re-signs with Lions

Thanks for that Blueskies. Nuff said.

March 15th, 2014, 8:51 pm

vankman79

Div 1 - Starter

Joined: August 19th, 2010, 9:24 pmPosts: 584

Re: Pettigrew re-signs with Lions

when they talked about him on nfl network they said the problem with brandon is that he really wasnt great at blocking or recieving and it proved to be right that most teams must have felt that way because nobody offered him a good deal.

March 16th, 2014, 10:16 am

The Legend

HC – Jim Caldwell

Joined: February 11th, 2005, 3:01 pmPosts: 4699Location: WSU

Re: Pettigrew re-signs with Lions

liontrax wrote:

Thanks for that Blueskies. Nuff said.

show me a blocking TE thats gets a 4 yr deal or $4million/yr. pettigrew s problem is consistency, focus, discipline - everyone agrees he has talent to block well and talent to be a factor in the passing game. what you miss in a highlight video is the frequency with which he succeeds/fails. the guy loses games bc he s an inconsistent tease, the lions coaching staff moved away from involving him bc he too frequently did things like get stripped of the football from guys 75 lbs lighter than him, drop key passes, getting suckered into retaliation personal fouls or duck passes thrown his way. a talented player but not a winning player

March 16th, 2014, 1:13 pm

The Legend

HC – Jim Caldwell

Joined: February 11th, 2005, 3:01 pmPosts: 4699Location: WSU

Re: Pettigrew re-signs with Lions

chilledmonkeybrains wrote:

I agree with liontrax, he improved and was the best TE on the market. I was interested in Owen Daniels as he performed well with Houston a few years ago and may have been worth a look (and cheaper). I'm happy with the move, much more of a Pett fan this last season than the 4 fumble season before

he didnt improve - the coaching staff made him a less important part of the game plans after he screwed the pooch repeatedly...you saw less mistakes bc he was used less in the passing game and bc u dont pay attention to his inconsistent blocking.